I have openly said before that I think the hands down, no questions asked #1 overall QB in this upcoming draft is Ryan Mallett, and I am not saying this as a Razorback "homer", in fact I am taking my "hog glasses" off to write this piece. I will go ahead and openly admit that as an Arkansas Alumnus and die hard Razorback fan, that I do have a bias toward Razorback players, but right now I am writing a completely unbiased piece about the advantages that Ryan Mallett has going into the draft because of Bobby Petrino's offense.
Why do I believe Ryan Mallett is the best QB in the draft? Well he came out of Bobby Petrino's pro-style offense at Arkansas. Yes, it is an "open style" pro offense, but a pro offense none the less. For Mallett it gave him experience calling plays in the huddle and then giving him the freedom to change them at the line of scrimmage, just like an NFL offense. He would be given a play to call in the huddle, and at the same time he would be given another play or two that he could audible to at the line of scrimmage depending on what the defense showed him. Did he make some bad audibles, especially in some big games in college? Yes. But it also gave him the experience and the tools to do it. Now compare this to a QB like Blaine Gabbert or Cam Newton, these guys were essentially given a formation and half a play call to make in the huddle. When they reached the line of scrimmage, and saw how the defense was set, the players would all turn their heads and look to the sidelines where there would be 5-10 coaches or backup players making a myriad of hand signals, gestures, or holding up signs that would tell each player what to do, including the QB, so at least Mallett has already had plenty of "on the job training". So essentially the coaches are reading the defense and telling the individual players what they should do. So how does that translate to the NFL? It doesn't. Does that mean that in 3-5 years Cam Newton or Blaine Gabbert won't be a better QB than Ryan Mallett? No it doesn't, it just means that they have a much steeper learning curve, and maybe in 2 years the team that drafts them finds out that they just do not have the ability to read a defense at all, ever. Then the team is set back a few years and has to start all over at the most important position on the field.
There are some questions out there about the character of Mallett, and I have heard some of them myself, but most of them come from him being labeled as "cocky" which is not necessarily a bad trait for an NFL QB. Other concerns are that of past drug use, while I did hear of some "marijuana use" in college by him, the majority of players in the NFL either did use or still use to some extent, it does not mean that it is a problem (heck a lot of non-NFL people use it on a regular basis and most tried it in college). At the most I believe he just needs a solid support system at the next level (which all teams should be providing to their rookies anyways, except the Bengals of course). I think the background of his parents, both are teachers and his dad is a football coach, should be viewed as a positive by most NFL clubs. I do not think his leadership can be challenged, not only did he turn himself into a leader at Arkansas by his final year, I read numerous reports of him at the combine being the leader of his QB group and also of other players congregating around him because of his leadership qualities, and these are future NFL players so he should have no problem commanding an NFL locker room or huddle.
I did not touch on his physical abilities much in this piece because I think by now everybody knows there is not much to talk about there. He has the height to see over even the tallest offensive linemen and clearly see the field and plays develop. His arm strength is unparalleled and once he in the NFL will be regularly talked about as one of, if not the, strongest arm in the league. He can make all the throws with ease, and his accuracy is only questioned when he has to throw on the move (even then there is not much bad you can say), and with some work it is an easily fixable problem at the next level. While he may have been ridiculed as of late due to a slow even for O-line standards 40 yard dash, he moves around the pocket very well and has solid, though not spectacular footwork. He is not a QB that will make plays with his feet, his arm strength, mechanics, and even footwork makes up for his lack of athletic ability.
Of course, even though Mallett came from a pro system and appears to be a solid leader it does not guarantee success at the pro level, but in my opinion it gives him a distinct advantage over other college QB's, combine that with his throwing ability and other physical tools, and it looks to me like you have a pretty sure bet of a player that will be effective in the NFL.
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